If by darkness you mean hard times, they may be from God. God allows us to be tried so that we may be purified even if it's not due to sin. God often uses satan as a pawn to accomplish this in a Christian's life, as we see in Job. There is also a spiritual longing, where God is silent, which can be from God, so that we will seek Him and He can train us. But this "darkness" should never make us think we're not saved, or God is not with us, loving us. If that's the case, it is not from God.

I guess I'm just trying to be sure we don't float over to the WOF camp, where if anything bad happens to us it must be because we are still sinning and aren't as perfect as the preacher, or because you don't have enough faith in your faith to have faith about faith in faith, or you haven't sewed enough seed to their ministry so God can't bless you because you're holding Him back, or because you are speaking negatively, or you need to have a talk with satan to cast him out.....

What we perceive as bad things happening to us, may be God making something great happen to us and we just can't understand yet.I totally agree with you, that was not what I was implying. I just meant, that whenever we truely reach For Our Lord, He will Always be there! It is through our Trials that HE ALLOWS, that we Grow and learn and our faith is strengthened. In fact, I believe that alot of times, He is trying to get our attention so we WILL SEEK HIM. Nothing happens outside of His Will!
My point, was that if we Seek him with all our heart, He is always there.
He's our steady in this world; our strength and our hope. We should lean on His understanding and not our own. We will screw it up every time if we get in His way.

SamSeeks

September 11th, 2007, 01:33 PM

For those who might be interested, Fr. Benedict Groschel, himself a psychologist as well as a priest who knew Mother Teresa for several decades, wrote a brief response to all of the recent media fol-de-rol about her. It is quite a nice, very brief, read. A quick quote:

What many current articles do not mention is that toward the end of her life the darkness lifted. Fr. Brian records the sisters’ observation when Mother Teresa returned to Calcutta shortly before her death: “After her return from Rome [and New York] . . . Mother had been extremely happy, joyful, optimistic, and talkative. Her face was always radiant, full of fun. The Lord must have revealed to her the impending end of her life.”

Our readers may find it interesting to know that I personally observed this joyfulness the day before Mother returned to Calcutta. I was asked by her sisters to offer Mass for her. She was so weak that she could not stand, but attended Mass lying on a cot. My confrere Fr. Andrew Apostoli and I were utterly astonished after Mass when she was “bubbly.” She laughed and told us with great joy the number of sisters and convents they had throughout the world. Mother never spoke about this before, and she was not doing so in any boastful way. Rather, she was rejoicing “with triumphant exultation” at the great blessings God had been able to grant through the Missionaries of Charity. Many memorable events took place during the thirty years I knew Mother Teresa, but this by far was the most remarkable.
http://www.firstthings.com/onthesquare/?p=848

Sam

Doxiemom

September 11th, 2007, 04:08 PM

Dear Samseeks: Thank you.

As all this has whirled about on rr I ahppened to see a re-run of Teresa's funeral and a commentary with her and a few of those who knew her.

We all know how much good she did in her life, but as it has been said, good works do not get you into Heaven. Faith does. Her faith had its valleys and peaks,after all she was human and not a female Christ which is what the world wanted of her.

But what struck me was this funeral! An amazing event that is not something that she did- it was not a "work". And now here was this non-christian nation, giving this woman a military state funeral. And on all the vehicles were Cross after Cross in flowers. Every step of the way, the Cross. All who watched, could not ignore that all this was because this one little woman believed in Jesus Christ.

Imagine such an event ever happening again. Would a nation, today, in that part of the world,
risk giving a state funeral with such a forthright acknowledgement of Jesus Christ? Is there anyone alive today who would inspire an event?

Abba'sLil'Girl

September 11th, 2007, 08:18 PM

Yeah that part got me too. I guess we all can go through some kind of darkness from God the Father.

Sorry to say I'm going throught a time of darkness from God. I pray the Holy Sprit gives me hope and joy again. Life has delt my family and myself a horrible blow. I do believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and that I'm saved because of that.

Darkness and silence are not the same thing. We have the Light of the World, Jesus Christ, to illuminate our way.

We must remember that sometimes God is silent in order to get our attention or to prepare us for a certain task. He uses the trials of this life to conform us into the image of Chirst.

Before our Lord, Christ began His earthly ministry, He went into the wilderness. There, He was tested - not because the Father was disappointed with Him (No, by no means) - but because God the Father was preparing the man, Jesus, for the challenging road ahead.

While Christ was man and God at once and had knowledge and ability beyond what we posses, we have Christ. So, we can lean on the One who has "been there and done that". Whatever pain we feel, He has experienced too.

Our personal time "in the spiritual wilderness" should not be looked upon as something to fear. As difficult as it may be to sometimes hold on to hope, we must remember that Christ is our Hope, and He has promised to never leave our side - no matter how weary we may become. He is always faithful even we are not.

So, you see, you already have the Hope that you seek. :) Stand on His Promise manifested in Jesus Christ our Lord, and let God handle the consequences of life. Truth is Truth no matter how we feel, and the Truth is we are never alone. Not only has the Lord given us Himself, but He has given us the Body for times such as these. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are here to share one another's burdens . . . for it is the example and calling of our Lord.

I will join you in prayer and lift you and your family up to the Lord Most High. :)

Grace and Peace to you.

Romans 8
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. 20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. 22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)

26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory.

31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? 33 Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. 34 Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.
35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? 36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

4JesusLove

September 17th, 2007, 06:30 PM

Sorry about the word darkness, I ment I am just not hearing anything in return. I know God still loves me and doesn't want my kids or myself hurt. I know He doesn't want anyone hurting. Thank you all for thinking about my family and myself in my time of sarrow. May the Lord Jesus bless you all as I'm sure He will.

CatholicConvert

September 23rd, 2007, 10:47 PM

Dear Samseeks: Thank you.

As all this has whirled about on rr I ahppened to see a re-run of Teresa's funeral and a commentary with her and a few of those who knew her.

We all know how much good she did in her life, but as it has been said, good works do not get you into Heaven. Faith does. Her faith had its valleys and peaks,after all she was human and not a female Christ which is what the world wanted of her.

But what struck me was this funeral! An amazing event that is not something that she did- it was not a "work". And now here was this non-christian nation, giving this woman a military state funeral. And on all the vehicles were Cross after Cross in flowers. Every step of the way, the Cross. All who watched, could not ignore that all this was because this one little woman believed in Jesus Christ.

Imagine such an event ever happening again. Would a nation, today, in that part of the world,
risk giving a state funeral with such a forthright acknowledgement of Jesus Christ? Is there anyone alive today who would inspire an event?

James 2:17 "So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead." Faith and works go hand and hand. Anyway, Mother Teresa was not lacking faith at all. She may not have felt the presence of God at times in her life. Being engulfed in the darkness of the world in Calcutta can do that even to the best of saints.

Buzzardhut

September 23rd, 2007, 11:57 PM

James 2:17 "So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead." Faith and works go hand and hand. Anyway, Mother Teresa was not lacking faith at all. She may not have felt the presence of God at times in her life. Being engulfed in the darkness of the world in Calcutta can do that even to the best of saints.
James 2 is speaking of works after salvation, not works towards salvation.

http://www.carm.org/catholic/faithalone.htm

seashell

September 24th, 2007, 12:43 AM

James is speaking of works after salvation, not works towards salvation.

Why did Peter say that Charity could cover a multitude of sins in Peter 1?

4:8And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

I think the story of Doubting Thomas from the book of John is a good story for this thread and it's also one of my favorites.

20:24But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. 20:25The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

20:26And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. 20:27Then saith he to Thomas, reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. 20:28And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. 20:29Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Buzzardhut

September 24th, 2007, 12:54 AM

Why did Peter say that Charity could cover a multitude of sins in Peter 1?

4:8And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
Charity and works did not die on the cross for your sins.
Jesus was crucified on the cross so that His blood atonement would cover all of your sins.
Do you place your faith in Jesus' substitutionary death on the cross to pay for your sins?

Do you also doubt in Gods' propitiation and justification and instead place your faith in works towards salvation?
for that would be Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit to reject God's free salvation and instead replace it with a religion of charity & works.

CatholicConvert

September 24th, 2007, 06:49 AM

Jesus Christ died in order that sins can be forgiven. Jesus told the apostles that they have the power to forgive sins and retain sins. Faith is a gift that comes from the grace of God. Without faith, any works done are for nothing of course. The issue is that you really can't do 'works' without faith. Works primarily consist of being obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ. This means following this teachings. If you don't believe he is Lord and Savior, why would you be obedient to him?